I See Hell In Your Eyes
by AgentSandsCIAsFynest
Summary: [movie] Ichabod meets a woman who will change his life forever, for better and for worse.
1. Chapter One

Disclaimer; Sadly, I do not own Ichabod or any other characters that might occur. They belong to the incredibly talented Washington Irving and, in the movie's case, Tim Burton. :)  
  
x-x-x  
  
"Ichabod..." the melodic voice lingered in the wind as it blew through the opened window. Constable Ichabod Crane stirred in his sleep, but did not wake. "Ichabod..." the voice sang once again, this time closer to his ear. Ichabod's eyes slowly surveyed his dark room and listened intently for another whisper. "Ichabod!" The voice was ten times closer, definitely female, and definitely frightening. Ichabod jumped up, bringing the blankets with him and let out a short squeal.  
  
"Who's there?" he called, looking around frantically for an intruder. He received no reply. "Hello?" he asked more quietly. The voice made no more sound the rest of the night, but Ichabod would not sleep. He lit the candle next to his bed and quickly covered himself in the blankets once again, somehow thinking they would serve as protection.  
  
As soon as the sun rose that morning, Ichabod was dressed and leaving his home. He needed to get out for a while to calm his nerves, although, he couldn't remember the last time his nerves had actually been settled.  
  
He walked slowly along the side of a vacant road just outside of town where he knew he wouldn't be bothered. Of course, if he were to get into trouble, there would be no one to call to for help. Fortunately, that thought hadn't crossed his mind as he continued strolling, his hands in the pockets of his black jacket and his head bowed as his eyes watched his feet take their steps.  
  
Footsteps were heard from behind and Ichabod's head shot up, his eyes widening and switching from left to right. He kept walking, picking up his pace a little, hoping not to provoke his follower.  
  
"Ichabod..." a familiar voice presented itself. Ichabod stopped dead in his tracks and his eyes got bigger. Could the person following be the voice he hears at night? He was afraid to find out, but curiosity gets the best of most people, especially Ichabod. He slowly turned around and prepared himself to be angered, horrified even, but he was none of those. He was taken aback, yes, but because of the sheer beauty of the woman standing before him.  
  
This woman was considerably shorter than Ichabod with black hair that was quite long and stringy. Her eyes were a very piercing bright blue that seemed to shoot directly through Ichabod. Her skin was pale such as his own and her lips were a soft pink. Her thin eyebrows were arched in a way suggesting interest, but Ichabod thought himself to be uninteresting, so what was it she could be wondering about?  
  
"Who are you?" Ichabod asked.  
  
"Who are you?" the woman replied, the words rolling off her tongue and floating into the air like music.  
  
"I should suspect you know who I am already," Ichabod said.  
  
"Why would you suspect that?" the woman wondered.  
  
"Is it not your voice I hear at night?" Her lips curled into a smile and Ichabod seemed to be drawn in by it.  
  
"Is it?" she questioned.  
  
"Yes," Ichabod whispered, his voice reaching an octave higher than normal. She laughed this time.  
  
"Are you frightened of me, Ichabod Crane?" she asked, her expressions changing to complete innocence.  
  
"How do you know my name?" Ichabod demanded.  
  
"Don't be silly, Mr. Crane, everyone knows your name," she said. "Ever since your encounter with the Horseman..." Ichabod shuddered at the memory. "That was you?"  
  
"Yes," he replied quietly, his eyes falling to the ground. When they returned to her face he asked, "who are you?"  
  
"Is that what you really want to know?" she inquired, walking closer to him. Confusion was noticeable on Ichabod's face. "Maybe you should not be asking who I am," she continued, her steps making a circle around him, "but of what am I." Ichabod swallowed a large lump in his throat. He'd had his fair share of the supernatural; he feared what her answer would be should he ask the question she wanted to hear.  
  
"Do not fear me, Ichabod," she whispered in his ear, standing on her tiptoes. "Not yet." Ichabod quickly spun around, mentally cursing himself for doing so, and stared into the woman's mystifying eyes, which had been blue, but were now a chilling green.  
  
"Ask," she repeated. "Ask the question." Ichabod took a deep breath.  
  
"Alright," he breathed, "what... are you?" She smiled wickedly.  
  
"I'm hungry," she replied.   
  
Ichabod's eyebrows furrowed in confusion and he had no time to react before the surprisingly powerful woman threw him to the ground. She was on top of him immediately after and a hand was strategically placed on the left of his neck as she suddenly sank her large, sharp teeth into his soft flesh. Ichabod gasped and grabbed at her silky black cloak, but nothing fazed the monstrous woman. She calmly sucked the life out of the man under her until her stomach could ingest no more. Her teeth lifted from the small wounds on the neck and she looked into Ichabod's eyes, which were mere slits and his eyeballs were floating around almost as if he were unable to see.  
  
"You, Ichabod, are the most filling ever I have had," she told him, running a nail along his jaw line. Ichabod's breathing was erratic and painful moans managed to escape his throat as his hands slowly lost their grip on her clothing. "You are a very beautiful creature," she continued. "But also mere food. You matter not to me." She quickly came to her feet and started on her way.  
  
"Please..." Ichabod whispered. The woman halted unexpectedly after hearing the word, the simple plead. "Do not leave me here." She turned to him and towered of him.  
  
"You're dying," she informed him, but of course he knew that. "Is there a more suitable place you wish to die?" she asked rhetorically.  
  
"I wish not to die," Ichabod breathed, finding it was becoming harder and harder to do so. The woman's eyebrow arched as she looked down upon the dying heap of human before her.   
  
She'd known pity once when she had been human, but could she be feeling it now? Ichabod Crane was beautiful, there was no denying, but feeling sorry for him had never been issue in all the time she'd been watching and following him. Would it be possible for him to join her? Would he even want to? He obviously wanted something other than death, but did she have the nerve and strength to bestow this upon him?  
  
"You wish not to die?" she asked softly. Somewhere Ichabod found the strength to nod, producing painful jolts in his neck. "And you would do anything to live?"  
  
"Yes," he groaned. He was dying quickly, she had to think fast. She swallowed hard and closed her eyes as she knelt down next to him. She lifted her thumbnail to her neck and made a small incision deep enough to produce a small river of blood that trickled down her pale skin. She pulled Ichabod up by his clothes so that he was in a sitting position.  
  
"Drink," she said almost sadly. Ichabod saw the red color flowing from an originating point in her neck. His vision was blurred, but common sense told him what it was and he refused. "Do you wish to live or do you wish to die?" she pointed out. Ichabod swallowed, which caused him more pain, before brushing her black hair away, licking his lips, and settling his mouth over the seeping hole.  
  
This blood tasted not sour and nauseating, but like sweet syrup. It was thick and easy to swallow; all traits that made Ichabod desire more. Letting the liquid drop into his mouth no longer, he began to suck on the wound, hoping for more and at a quicker pace. He received just that.  
  
Ichabod felt the woman breathing heavily against his skin and her hand tangled in his hair. Could it be that she was getting physical pleasure out of this? It was definitely possible to Ichabod after all he'd been through. He continued to devour the woman's blood as fast as he could. She began to moan at the pleasure she was receiving, but she knew it would end soon and the pain would start to set in.  
  
"Ichabod..." she breathed, running her tongue over her lips, which still tasted of his blood, making her want to let him drink her longer. She felt his hands on her back, pulling her closer to him and she felt the heat that was once radiating from his body start to disappear. He was becoming what she was, he was becoming immortal.  
  
Finally she found the will power to push Ichabod away and he looked into her eyes, which had another color change to brown. Their foreheads pressed together as they breathed heavily and the woman's hand brushed through his hair to his neck.  
  
"What do you see?" she whispered, her lips brushing against his. Ichabod's eyes burned into hers.  
  
"I see Hell," he replied. She smiled the one and only menacing smile that would have frightened Ichabod, but he'd gone through a change. A change for the better or a change for the worse. 


	2. Chapter Two

Ichabod's vision had changed dramatically; he could see ten times better than before drinking the woman's blood, and things that he knew were far away seemed much closer. He also felt somewhat lighter on his feet, like if he were to take a step he might float into the air. But the most noticeable change came from his mouth; his teeth had grown considerably and they were stronger, he could tell. He felt stronger, his body was refreshed.  
  
"How do you feel now, Ichabod?" the woman asked, placing her hand on his face. Her connection to him seemed to complete in that instant and a physical need for him presented itself.  
  
"Like I've just sold my soul to the Devil himself," Ichabod replied honestly. The woman smiled.  
  
"Herself," she corrected. Ichabod looked at her with a flash of fear still visible in his eyes. "But think of everything you have acquired, Ichabod!" she said excitedly, her hand gripping his tightly. "All the freedom, the fear..."  
  
"Fear?" Ichabod questioned.  
  
"Yes... everyone you meet shall fear you. Except, of course, for others like us."  
  
"What are we?" he asked, stopping in the middle of the road.  
  
"We are better than humans," she said angrily. "They were put here to serve as food for us."  
  
"Us?"  
  
"Us. We defy gravity, we possess the capabilities of invisibility..."  
  
"There must be a consequence to what we are," Ichabod argued.  
  
"Yes, one," she replied, her tone sounding reluctant. "We must stay out of the sunlight."  
  
"Stay out of the sunlight?"  
  
"Darkness is now your best friend, the sun your enemy. It will kill you should you choose to step into it."  
  
"This is preposterous!" Ichabod exclaimed. The woman turned in the direction where the sun would soon be rising in only a matter of minutes.  
  
"You chose to live and this is all I could offer you!" she yelled.  
  
"And I will not kill for food!" Ichabod yelled as well. The woman arched an eyebrow and tilted her head.  
  
"No?" she asked. "Then you shall die the most horrible way a vampire can die."  
  
"Vampire?"  
  
"If you do not feed, you will watch yourself waste away into nothing... it will take a lifetime." Ichabod's breath caught in his throat.  
  
"A lifetime?" he asked with a frightened tone. "Care to elaborate?"  
  
"I've given you the gift of immortality... not only will you never age, you will never die," she explained. Ichabod stared at her incredulously.  
  
"What have you done to me?" he asked.  
  
"I have given you powers beyond your wildest dreams," she stammered angrily. "You should be gracious."  
  
"Gracious that you have prolonged my life so that I may watch everyone around me die? You have given me a stomach that shall only ingest human blood and to get that, I must kill!" Ichabod yelled. The woman grinded her teeth and because of the strong enamel, Ichabod could hear them rubbing together.  
  
"Your lingering respect and love for the humans disgusts me," she growled, "you will not survive if you continue this way and you'll slow me down as well. That I will not have. I'll leave you now and never return."  
  
"No! Please don't!" Ichabod cried, grabbing her arm as she began to walk away. She gazed into his eyes and regretted ever discovering his presence only a few years before. "You must understand my position."  
  
"I do," she agreed quietly. "But your position must change and change rapidly or you will become a target." Ichabod's eyebrows furrowed.  
  
"Target of whom?" She didn't want to answer and she was almost thankful when she felt the first rays of the sun in the air.  
  
"The sun rises," she announced. "We must hurry." She placed her hands on his face and gazed into his eyes. By doing so, she was able to read his mind. He was frightened. Confused. Curious.  
  
"Your name, please, Miss," he said quietly. She smiled at his manners; it would be extremely difficult teaching him the vampire ways.  
  
"Raiyne," she whispered. "My name is Raiyne."  
  
Ichabod couldn't reply and tell her what a beautiful name she had because of the sudden change in the weather around him. The wind picked up, blowing hair in every direction and the silk cloak Raiyne wore flew into the air behind her. The scenery all around began to disappear right before Ichabod's eyes and fade into utter blackness. His feet no longer stood on the ground, there was nothing under him and common sense told him he had to be flying. The only thing he could see was Raiyne, which was somewhat comforting. She wouldn't leave him, he hoped. 


	3. Chapter Three

When the darkness began to lighten and shapes were presented, Ichabod found they were standing inside a home, a very dilapidated home. The wood was beginning to crack under their feet, anything that might've had color in the past was brown or grey, but the most noticeable things in the room where they stood were two caskets; two empty caskets.  
  
"Why are there coffins in the room?" he whispered, staring at them, but directing the question to Raiyne. She looked at him, not hesitating her answer.  
  
"That is where we sleep, Ichabod," she said. He gulped and finally turned to her.  
  
"We sleep… in coffins?" he asked, a smirk claiming his lips as he couldn't believe any of this was happening to him of all people.  
  
"Yes," Raiyne whispered. "They are quite comfortable for us. You'll get used to them." She pulled him over to one and his body froze.  
  
"Have you always intended on doing this to me?" he questioned, realizing there were two caskets and Raiyne had had no companion. Raiyne knew what he was thinking.  
  
"No," she quickly answered. "This belonged to a past friend… a close friend." Ichabod could hear the pain in her voice and he could see it in her eyes, so he took the subject no further. Pulling in a deep breath, he opted to climb into the casket as Raiyne held the candle close so he could see. He sucked in another breath before very slowly lying down and Raiyne mused over his wide eyes.  
  
"You'll be fine," she assured him, sliding the lid up to his neck. "Now sleep for we have a big night ahead of us tomorrow." Ichabod turned his wide eyes to her just as she slid the lid over him.  
  
In the terrible darkness and silence, Ichabod couldn't help but think about exactly how comfortable the coffin actually was. His back was perfectly straight and his head desired no pillow nor did his body need blankets. He felt slightly cold, but he ignored it as he brought his hand up to his mouth to touch his newly formed fangs. The sharpness cut his finger and he smiled at how easily it would be to cut into someone else's skin because he was already hungry. He wasn't happy about having to commit murder to feed himself, but he would do what he had to for survival.  
  
As Ichabod slowly fell asleep, his subconscious awoke, giving him dreams that would've been nightmares had he still been human. The only color he could see was red, but he spotted himself walking with Raiyne down an empty street. They were walking behind a man quietly when suddenly Ichabod jumped at him and sank his teeth into his neck. Ichabod was appalled by his own actions, but then he wondered if the man he was killing had done something wrong in his life. Maybe he'd hurt someone, he might have even killed someone, so maybe he deserved to be killed. If he thought this way, it would make it easier to take another man's life… he hoped.  
  
At the same time, Raiyne's subconscious had come to life as well, giving her dreams of Ichabod. She was kissing him, loving him, making love to him. She'd never had such a dream before, but this one made her feel a sense of happiness; she hadn't been that way in a long time. Being happy was something that usually wasn't present in vampires, so Raiyne knew for a fact that she had to dreaming all of this. She hadn't been happy in decades.  
  
The next night, Raiyne's eyes fluttered open and she sighed angrily; she was so hungry. She gazed at the lid of the coffin and it began to move back without a touch from her hands. She sat up smoothly, again without the use of her hands, and yawned, brandishing her sharp white teeth. Ichabod's lid suddenly flew off and Raiyne looked over at him quickly just as he was sitting up. He cracked his stiff neck, the sound audible, and ran his tongue over his fangs. He slowly turned his head and looked at Raiyne with lustful eyes.  
  
"I'm hungry," he announced. Raiyne smiled and nodded.  
  
"Yes…" she hissed.  
  
The two, instead of taking the easy way like they had the night before, walked into the loud, busy New York City. It was around eight at night and the streets were still very much alive with people. Raiyne questioned Ichabod, asking him what his flavor was, what kind of person he wished to have.  
  
"Your blood calls to me," he said to her. Raiyne smiled brightly; that was an ingenious compliment.  
  
"You cannot have anymore of mine," she refused, "it would kill us both." Ichabod wondered why, but didn't ask. Raiyne knew what he was thinking, though, she could read his thoughts, and soon enough, he'd be able to read hers. A thought which frightened her.  
  
"Well, what do you recommend?" Ichabod asked, his voice lighter and seemingly more carefree. Raiyne took a deep breath through her nostrils; she could smell where the good blood was coming from. Her nose led her down an almost empty street save for two men walking together, talking quietly.  
  
"Can you smell them?" Raiyne asked, wrapping her arms around his left arm. Ichabod inhaled deeply, but smelled only the city and nothing else. "Don't worry," she assured him, squeezing his arm, "it will come to you in time." They continued walking behind the men unnoticed to Ichabod's surprise. Surely their footsteps were loud enough to be heard. "We should announce our presence," Raiyne suggested. "It is impolite to follow someone." Ichabod's eyebrows furrowed and he watched as Raiyne walked in front of the men, turned to them, and they stopped abruptly.  
  
Ichabod could see a strange look in her eyes. The color had changed from bright blue to an apparent black and she looked at them with her head tilted to the side. She was hypnotizing them, placing them under her spell. Could she be a witch of some sort or were these the traits of vampires? Ichabod couldn't wait, if these spells belonged to vampires, to obtain them and learn how to use what he was given. It was appealing to him to have people under his spell, making them do whatever he wished.  
  
"Come Ichabod," Raiyne beckoned, curling her finger. Ichabod approached them and looked at one of the men. Suddenly, Ichabod attacked the man, sinking his fangs into his neck and immediately sucking the blood from the holes he'd made. Raiyne smiled as she watched, entranced by what she'd made and how little time it had taken Ichabod to come to terms with what he was.  
  
After gawking at her protégé, Raiyne proceeded to feed on the other man who was simply awaiting his fate in another world. When she finished, she let the man fall to the ground as did Ichabod and the two looked at each other. Lust was visible in their eyes; they desired each other and Raiyne knew it would happen after every feeding, it was something that came with the territory. A vampire's love or, in this case, lust was far greater than that of human love or lust.  
  
Raiyne and Ichabod came together, her hands finding his face, and their lips met roughly. Tongues entered new grounds only for the taste of blood that lingered in the other's mouth. It tasted even better mixed with unfamiliar things. They pulled away, both out of breath and gazed into each other's eyes.  
  
"What happened?" Ichabod asked. Raiyne smiled.  
  
"You are under my spell, dear Ichabod," she whispered. Ichabod smiled, not minding this. Their hands came together with fingers intertwined and headed down the street not knowing what terror awaited them around the corner. 


End file.
